God Wants You to Sharpen Your Skill

I recently watched some videos of street vendors cutting fruits and vegetables. The precision, accuracy, and speed at which they cut fruits left me in awe. I certainly can’t match them in fruit cutting, they have perfected this skill over time. They probably cut more fruits in a day than I would ever cut in a month. Everyone appreciates people who are skillful at what they do. Whenever we are in a need of a service, we always seek people who are skilled in the area of our specific need provided we can afford their service. The sports industry today is worth over $500 billion because people are willing to pay to watch sportsmen and women display their skills and talent. No football enthusiast enjoys watching a football game that lacks skill and finesse. In the same vein, we don’t look for people who lack skill in their work.

Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials of low rank. – Proverbs 22:29, NIV

God has given every one of us work to do and He expects us to do the work with excellence. As children of God, we appreciate excellence and our God is the epitome of excellence. “Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good! …” (Genesis 1:31), that’s excellence right there! Whatever we find ourselves doing is worth doing well. We shouldn’t be accustomed to settling for mediocrity, we should always strive for excellence. Our work doesn’t just speak about us, but it speaks about our dedication and faithfulness to our commitments. Sometimes people can tell how disciplined and dedicated we are to our craft by the quality of work we produce. No matter how talented you are, if you stop sharpening your skill you will decline in your ability. I had a boss who told me he would rather choose someone who is less skillful but actively works to improve and challenge themselves than someone who is skillful but doesn’t seek to improve themselves or put in the effort to maintain their skill.

We shouldn't be accustomed to settling for mediocrity, we should always strive for excellence. Our work doesn't just speak about us, but it speaks about our dedication and faithfulness to our commitments. Share on X

One way by which we can motivate ourselves to keep sharpening our skill is to consider our work as unto God and not men. Colossians 3:23,NIV tells us that “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters”. It doesn’t matter how small or insignificant your work is, do it as unto the Lord. Imagine if you had to present your work to the Lord, will you do a shabby job? Won’t you dedicate time and resources towards perfecting your skill so that you can achieve excellent results? A skillful man can serve kings because the work of his hand befits the palace.

Do you have skills that can make kings look for you? Can God choose you for greater responsibilities because of how well you have sharpened your skills? In Psalms 78:70-72,NIV   we see that God chose David to shepherd his people. “He chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens; from tending the sheep he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance. And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them”. David’s ability and skill to lead God’s children was never in doubt as he had demonstrated leadership taking care of sheep. In other words, David had sharpened his leadership skill before he was chosen for a greater responsibility of leadership. For some of us, the reason we haven’t been promoted or entrusted with greater responsibilities is because we have not shown that we have the required skill to move to the next level. There is no spiritual substitute for sharpening your skill.

If the ax is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed, but skill will bring success – Ecclesiastes 10:10, NIV

There are periods when your edge becomes blunt, when it takes you more strength and effort to achieve a decent result. Ecclesiastes 10:10 reminds us that at such times, you should spend time sharpening your axe. As we journey through life, we have opportunities to learn each day. When you stop learning, you become dull. When you become dull, you become obsolete. When you become obsolete your work will not be useful, i.e. the result of your work can no longer serve its purpose, it won’t be relevant. Sharpen your skill, seek resources that can help you to develop your skill better. Read books, study, and have sound conversations with people who are better skilled than you are in your area of interest, as Proverbs 27:17 puts it “iron sharpeneth iron”. If you want to stay sharp, hang out with sharp people.  Spend money on tools that could help you stay sharp. Take courses, programs, or pursue degrees that could add to your body of knowledge. Maximize technology for your needs i.e. set a monthly reminder to read books or journals in your area of expertise or interest. Learn to seek avenues that can help you put your skill into practice. For instance, no matter how much you have perfected playing a musical instrument, you can only accurately measure your skill and grow your confidence when you perform to listening ears. So, don’t just sharpen your axe in your room, go to the forest and test your axe on trees.

We should always remember that the skills we possess are given to us by God to meet the needs of His children and to advance the work of the gospel. Cherish what you have, and keep it sharp. Let the word of God guide your choices and decisions to stay sharp and true to the purpose of the skills you have been graced to acquire.